Undefeated, Los Al hockey team hasn't showed its newness

Los Alamitos' Joseph Aquirre, right, skates around Damien's Adam Avalos on his way to the goal in the first period of play on Saturday afternoon at The Rinks Anaheim Ice.VICTOR M. POSADAS, FOR THE REGISTER

Hockey's tough climb toward CIF status

The most significant impediment to CIF accreditation would be the club system in the sport, which runs concurrently with the Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League season. CIF athletes are not allowed to play on a club team in the same sport and season they play on a school-affiliated team. The ADHSHL would have to move its season to the spring or deal with the best players choosing whether to play club or for their high school, which would likely be a losing proposition for the league.

Even if ice hockey is approved by the CIF, the Southern Section would need at least 20 percent of its 572 member schools to participate in the sport for it to offer playoffs. Sports such as badminton, field hockey, lacrosse and gymnastics are all approved by the CIF, but don't have enough schools participating to allow playoffs in the Southern Section.

Although Art Trottier, vice president of The Rinks, acknowledges CIF affiliation is the league's ultimate goal, he also realized the many hurdles in the way and is content with taking small steps as long as the league keeps progressing. It has grown significantly in the past calendar year, expanding from 14 teams in 2012-13 to 28 this season (JV and varsity combined).

"We hope to sit down with the CIF sometime to see if it's a realistic goal," Trottier said. "Is it our ultimate goal? Yes, but if it doesn't happen, we're OK with it. ... We're very honest about it. We're not going to sit and promise people (it will be a CIF sport)."

Christian and Mark Papadopoulos gave up on ice hockey when they started attending Los Alamitos High School.

It was a simple decision. Both wanted to be involved in a sport that they could play with “Los Alamitos” on their chests, and that wasn't possible playing hockey.

So they exchanged their hockey sticks for lacrosse sticks until this school year, when Los Alamitos announced it would expand from a single junior varsity club ice hockey team to varsity and JV squads.

“We wanted to be a part of the school, so we switched over to lacrosse,” said Mark, a junior goaltender and the younger brother to Christian, a senior. “Then this popped up. We love hockey, so we came back to it.”

Nearly two months into its first year at the varsity level of competition in the Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League, the Griffins have yet to leave the ice unhappy after a game.

Los Al stands alone in first place with a 6-0 record in the 10-team 2A varsity level. The Griffins will take on Huntington Beach High on Saturday at Anaheim Ice.

The Griffins have carried the momentum from their first JV season last year, in which they advanced to the championship game.

“I saw the kids wearing jerseys last year,” said Christian Papadopoulos, who also is the student body president at Los Al. “They kept winning and got to the finals. I was disappointed I wasn't a part of it, and it made me want to be on this team more.”

The Papadopoulos brothers represent only one type of player on the team, though.

High school hockey is relatively new to the sports landscape in Southern California, and it significantly trails the established system of club hockey in overall interest. The Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League began play in 2008, and a similar league in Valencia started in 2001.The top level of amateur youth hockey, referred to as AAA, still possesses the top talent, but several AAA players are leaking over into the high school ranks.

“It's fun for them,” Los Alamitos coach Sandy Gasseau said of the AAA players. “Maybe it's a little more laid-back. Maybe they're able to produce more offensively. There's more space, more room to do things. On your AAA teams, you're not going to get three goals in one game, but if you come play with us, you can.”

One of those AAA crossovers is Los Alamitos' Rock Boynton, arguably the best goaltender in the Ducks' high school league. Boynton is second in the league in goals-against average (1.61) and save percentage (.910), but he doesn't even attend the school on his jersey. Boynton attends Narbonne High in Harbor City and was recruited to play for Los Alamitos by Gasseau, who also coaches for the Anaheim Jr. Ducks, Boynton's club team.

It's almost like business vs. pleasure for Boynton, who gets exposure and prime competition while playing AAA hockey for the Jr. Ducks, but enjoys the atmosphere and fans of the high school league more.

“Coach asked me if I wanted to play on the team, that it would be a good experience, more practice and more game scenarios,” he said.

“It's actually a lot more fun because there are a lot more fans in the stands, and the whole high school comes to watch you. You don't get that in club. You only get parents,” Boynton said.

Los Alamitos' Joseph Aquirre, right, skates around Damien's Adam Avalos on his way to the goal in the first period of play on Saturday afternoon at The Rinks Anaheim Ice. VICTOR M. POSADAS, FOR THE REGISTER
Christian Papadopoulos, top, and brother Mark now carry hockey sticks instead of lacrosse sticks for Los Alamitos High's varsity team. BRUCE HAZELTON, THE REGISTER
Greg Bennett carries the puck during practice for the Los Alamitos High hockey team. BRUCE HAZELTON, THE REGISTER
Los Alamitos' Jason Epperly controls the puck in traffic while attacking during a varsity hockey game against Long Beach Prep on Saturday at Lakewood Ice. MIKE GREENE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Los Alamitos' Chris Hartman prepares to take a shot on goal during a varsity hockey game against Long Beach Prep on Saturday at Lakewood Ice. MIKE GREENE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

1 of

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.